Niek Pulles recently sent me this experimental video piece with stretch fabrics. He just graduated at the Design Academy Eindhoven, with this project making up one of the modules in his final year.
It is a short visual work which originates from the brief to create an inspiration movie for the fashion industry. This piece looks into the concept of how we as a society cover over and patch up our most valuable assets, our purest form, our bodies. Reshaping and rebranding them to create something we are not. Stretch, on your skin, the feeling of being protected. Smooth and unexpectedly movements, rapidly made color explosion, shaped by coincidence.
International architecture firm Snøhetta, founded in Oslo in 1989, are exhibiting some of their most important work at Scandinavian House: The Nordic Center in America, located at 58 Park Ave in NYC. Through April 24, 2010, you can view a collection the firm’s environmentally-conscious designs through films, drawings, models, and interactive learning devices. Snøhetta’s designs take both cultural and environmental contexts into consideration, finding a balance between the natural and built worlds. An intriguing characteristic found in much of their architecture is a blurring between sub-/superterranean boundaries. Pictured below are the King Abdulaziz Center for Knowledge and Culture, the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, and study models.
The Belgian architectural firm dmvA designed ‘blob VB3′, a mobile unit for the office of Xfactoragencies as an extension to the ‘house’. The space – egg house consists of a bathroom, kitchen, lighting, a bed and several niches for storage. The nose can be opened automatically and functions as a kind of porch. It easily transportable and can also be used as an office, guestroom or garden house. Polyester was the primarily material used in construction of the ‘Blob VB3′.
A wonderful new idea for an iPhone app that enhances the interaction with chilrens’ books: PhoneBook was presented by the Mobile Art Lab in Tokyo. Unfortunately there is no text to be found in a language that I was able to understand (only Japanese, sorry). But if you watch this little video there is no need for any further explanation – just press play and enjoy.
Iranian architect India Mahdavi designed the new restaurant Café Germain in Paris – a great 70s old school bistro/diner style. It was opened by French Entrepreneur Thierry Costes. The two story restaurant/lounge is split in two by the massive yellow sculpture entitled Sophie,created by the renowned French artist Xavier Veilhan, who is currently showcasing in the Chateau des Versailles in France.
Coffee And Cigarettes can be now sitting on your desk or table and keep the emotions of the wonderful movie by Roberto Benigni alive. A cup to enjoy your coffee while waiting to smoke a cigarette – an ashtray to enjoy the cigarette after the coffee. According to the words of its designer, Carlo Trevisani, you don’t have to be a smoker to enjoy this and smoking is not encouraged.
Approaching completion, Jean Nouvel’s new luxury residences at 100 11th have been masterfully crafted from the inside and out. The 23-story tower, located at 19th St and West Side Highway, faces the IAC/InterActive Corporation headquarters designed by Frank Gehry. Both buildings, bound by the Hudson River to the west and the High Line to the east, provide a new chapter to the ever-changing story of Chelsea’s design district.
The most dynamic views of 100 11th, referred to as the “Vision Machine” by Jean Nouvel, can be taken in from the south via the High Line, or the west – even from across the Hudson. These are the sides which the highly engineered glass curtain wall, the most technologically advanced ever constructed in NYC, wraps tightly around the black brick building. Made up of approximately 1647 window panes varying in both size and inclination, these façades shift throughout the day depending on the location of the sun. The photograph below was taken from the High Line at sunset, with its mosaic-like screen capturing and reflecting the fragmented, nuanced, changing life of New York City.
By contrast, the north and east façades are made up of black brick referencing the masonry characteristics of West Chelsea’s industrial past. Punched windows, also varying in size and location, frame and highlight certain views of the city from within. While not yet occupied, every single residence at 100 11th will be connected to the south or west window wall, receiving a floor-to-ceiling stretch of natural light and urban energy.
After purchasing an old hotel in the West Queen West Art and Design District in 2001, cultural visionary Jeff Stober teamed up with local architect Paul Syme and multi-disciplinary design firm 3rd UNCLE to realize a space that would change the way visitors and locals experience hospitality in Toronto. Through the careful planning and thoughtful renovation of a hotel that was originally built in 1890, the extremely talented creative team preserved iconic elements of the building’s past while infusing it with a new energy.
The interior program at the Drake was reconfigured to include 19 guest rooms and several new functions, which allowed guests to enjoy an intersection of “Hospitality, Culture and Community”. The cohesiveness of the concept and brand identity has continued through subsequent renovations of the hotel. Charm is found in the details throughout the hotel and in the guest rooms, appointed with custom luggage racks reminiscent of the area’s railway history and handmade dolls that patiently await your arrival. Since the re-opening of its doors in 2004, the Drake hotel has established itself as more than just a trend.
With the mélange of activities at the Drake, you really could spend an entire day there wandering from one space to the next. Start the day off right by getting centered at the yoga gym, then stop into the cafe for an espresso and pastry. For lunch, try some innovative sushi at the Raw Bar and then head up to the Sky Yard to mingle in the afternoon sun. Relax in the Lounge for pre-dinner drinks before meeting with friends to enjoy private dining in Room 222. A day at the Drake wouldn’t be complete without checking out a new band at the Underground before returning to the Sky Yard for a warm apple cider by the fire pit. If you feel as though you haven’t had enough upon check out, pop into the General Store on your way out for some Drake-to-go.
Signing off, Drake enthusiast.
Photos via Drake Hotel, 3rd Uncle Design Inc, and George Whiteside
Located in one of istanbul’s most populated and diverse neighborhoods, besiktas is an eclectic area with a village-like atmosphere that is in the process of urban renewal. The besiktas fish market is located on a triangular site. it is an iconic venue where many locals and visitors buy fresh fish daily. the construction of the old fish market was in very poor shape and needed to be replaced.
The design solution was to maintain its iconic neighborhood presence, while also reaffirming its welcoming feeling. GAD (global architectural development) designed a triangular shaped concrete shell covering the entire site with large openings at street level. The concrete shell provides a column-free interior space, optimizing the project’s programmatic needs. the new design injects a contemporary and pragmatic solution, at once preserving the fish market’s history.
Japanese architects Suppose Design Office have completed a hair salon in Hiroshima, Japan, with a band of mirror glass wrapped around the cutting space. Called Lodge, the salon is divided into three parts by shelves and the mirror strip, which is positioned at customers’ head height and affords a sense of privacy when they are seated. The interior features bare wooden furniture, and the mirror is frosted except for areas where clients will be seated.
